A Child of Opportunity
by LilliaSnape
Summary: Bellatrix Lestrange and Voldemort had a child before his death. This is her story. I stink at reviews, but this is my first real fanfic. Please read and review. Loves Y'all! Note: This is original character centered.
1. A Daughter?

-1Bellatrix Lestrange fell to her knees as Lord Voldemort entered her bedroom. "My Lord." He looked enraged, and if he wanted to see her when he was this upset it meant trouble. She would have to be cautious.

"Why did you never tell me?" He demanded, his red eyes bright with anger.

"What do you mean, my lord?" she gasped.

A flick of his wand sent her flying across the room and pinned her to the wall. "Don't try resort to lies, Bellatrix. It won't do you any good. You know exactly what I am talking about. It is the only thing you have ever lied to me about."

"I… I don't know. I thought… I thought that you would be ashamed." She managed.

He advanced on her, sweeping through the dreary room like death itself.. "No, that is another lie! You were ashamed! You didn't want people to know that you had a child with a fallen wizard. You did not want the world to know that a man who was beaten by a mere boy had given you a child."

Bellatrix racked her brain for an excuse. Her hesitation was all the answer that he needed. She dropped to her feet as Voldemort released his binding spell. She smiled, but she didn't have a chance to show her gratitude. "Crucio!" the smooth voice said calmly. Bellatrix fell to the ground writhing in agony. She tried to scream for mercy, but all the air had escaped her lungs. When he finally broke the spell she still could not manage a comprehensive syllable. He bent slowly and rested his hand on her tear streaked face. "Where is the child?"

"I… I… I…" She paused to catch her breath. Voldemort nodded for her to continue. "I sent her to an orphanage. I… I'm sorry. I couldn't do it alone." He hit her hard in the face. Gasping she coughed blood onto the dark green carpet. He stood again his face full of fury.

"You never deserved to sit at my feet, let alone have my child, Bellatrix. I think that you have outgrown your usefulness."

Her eyes grew wide in fear. "Didn't you ever love me?"

"Oh, Bellatrix, don't be naïve. You were nothing more than the dirt for my heir to grow in." he laughed cruelly, relishing in her horror.

"Avada Kedavra!" Lord Voldemort smiled and swept out of the room leaving her slumped and lifeless body for less important people to take care of.

Lord Voldemort made his way down the stairs his robes sweeping around him angrily. He nodded to Lucius who was waiting at the door. "Lucius, how much do you know about my child? I didn't take the time to ask Bellatrix before dealing with the wench. I need more information."

Lucius's eyebrows went up. "Dealing with, my Lord?"

"Well, since it seems you can not comprehend subtleties I will make it easier for you. Bellatrix Lestrange is dead." He motioned his arm to the stairs as if to challenge Lucius to investigate for himself.

Lucius shook his head. "I trust you did the job thoroughly. About you daughter…"

"Daughter?"

"Yes, my Lord."

"My heir is female?"

"To the best of my knowledge."

"Well, go on then."

"I know that she is fifteen years old. I know that she lives in a Muggle orphanage in London. And she is a student at Hogwarts."

"Which House?"

"Slytherin, my Lord. What else could be expected?"

Voldemort smiled. It was the news he had wanted to hear. For the first time he turned his attention to the younger Malfoy. He was a boy with short blonde hair and mischievous eyes. "If you saw her would you recognize her?"

Draco smiled "Of course." Voldemort didn't need to hear anything else. He swung the front door of Bellatrix Lestrange's house open and stepped out into the warm night air.


	2. Father?

Note: All of this except Lillia belongs to JKR.

Please Please review when you are finished. I will not be offended if you don't like it.

Lillia frowned up at the cobweb ceiling. She could have sworn that she heard Mrs. Hawthorne calling her name. Or was it another dream? She was always having strange dreams. They had been plaguing her since she was eleven. "Lillia Jane Montgomery!" the harsh voice echoed through the ancient house. "No, this is definitely not a dream." she muttered pushing the ratty blanket to the foot of her lumpy bed. Lillia ruffled her hair in an attempt to appear like she had been getting a good night's sleep instead of staring at the ceiling restlessly. She tossed her bare legs over the side of the bed and tiptoed to the door. She thought that she had managed to get out of bed without waking the other girls, but as she creaked the door open a voice behind her demanded. "Where do you think you are going, Witch?"

"Um… Mrs. Hawthorne is calling for me. She'll probably be mad if I don't hurry actually." But Lillia didn't move. She watched as Anna climbed out of her own, considerably less dilapidated bed, and made her way to the door. With her face mere inches form Lillia's face she smiled. "She probably just wants you to scrub the toilets before the rest of us get up."

Lillia shrugged. "It's a possibility. Good night, Anna."

Anna's face contorted into a look of sheer disgust. Lillia only managed to close her eyes seconds before Anna spat in her face. "Freak!" she exclaimed before turning smartly on her heel and returning to her bed.

Lillia paused in the hallway to wipe the spit and a few bitter tears from her face on her nightgown. Once she had steadied her breathing she scrutinized the miserable excuse for clothing. The stained fabric hung much too loosely from her thin frame. It had been cut several inches above the knee to save cloth for some other purpose. She sighed to herself. "Well at least when I get to Hogwarts I can borrow clothes from them."

She decided that it would be best to answer Mrs. Hawthorne, whose calls were getting more intense by the second, instead of moping. "Yes. Sorry. I'm here." Lillia muttered as she stumbled into the foyer. "Is anything wrong?"

"Do you know how LONG I have been calling for you, Jane?" the large woman demanded. Lillia gritted her teeth at being addressed as "Jane" but she knew that there was no point in pointing this out to her. She winced as Mrs. Hawthorne continued. "I want you to answer me right now! What on earth could have taken you so long?"

'I'm sorry. I was in a very deep sleep. What can I do for you?" Lillia asked softly.

"You have a visitor." Mrs. Hawthorne spoke as though it was Lillia's fault that she had been drug out of bed in the middle of the night. She motioned stiffly to a man behind her. He had been waiting to be introduced.

Lillia gasped. She recognized the man immediately. His dark robes, greasy black hair, and cold eyes could only belong to one person. But somehow Lillia knew that the potions master wanted her to play along. Lillia only wished that she new what the game was. "Hello. Uh, Mrs. Hawthorne what is going on?"

"This is your father."

"My…. father?" She look to her familiar teacher in surprise. She had once thought about a mother or father coming to take her away from Mrs. Hawthorne and the other girls, but that was a fantasy that she had long put away. And know here someone had come to take her away and she didn't know how to react.

Mrs. Hawthorne nodded. "Yes. And he says that he would like to take you with him now. And seeing as how… maladjusted you are here even after so many years I don't see any reason to object. He seems like a very stable man. You should be very happy with him."

"But… I don't even know him!" she wailed. For the first time the man came closer to her. He looked down at her with cold eyes.

"I'm sorry that I could not find you earlier. Your mother never told me that we had a child. Her dying wish was for me to come and find you. She died on this very night."

Lillia tilted he head slightly. "Was she ill?"

He frowned at her. "Well, it was rather sudden."

She shifted her weight to her left foot. "I'm sorry to hear that." she said uncomfortably.

He cleared his throat. "Yes, well, we had better be leaving then. You should probably go get your things."

"No, she won't be going to go get her things. I bought every stitch of clothing that this child has to wear because there was no one else to do it. She had no family to care for her, so she came here. That is what orphanages are for. But since you are now claiming her as your daughter she is no longer an orphan; therefore, it is no longer my responsibility to supply her clothing. Unless, of course you continue to refuse to take responsibility for you child. " she turned to the man. "Unless of course you have any objection to taking responsibility for your child."

His lip curled in contempt. "Of course not."

"Good." Her eyes fell on Lillia. "You can leave in what you are wearing. I'm sure that you two can show yourself out." Lillia watched in amazement as her former guardian lumbered down the hall in her floral nightgown.

"I'm that easy to give away?" she stammered.


	3. Thought of the Faithful

Disclaimer: I never put one of these on the first two chapters, and I probably won't on any others because they are pointless. All of this, except Lillia, belongs to JKR. Anyone who could possibly be confused on this matter is a git!

NOTE ON REVIEWS: I realize that writing reviews takes a little bit of thought on your part but I really do need them. I would very much appreciate it if the 72 people who have read this would actually give me some feedback. This is the first fanfic that I have ever posted so very new to this. I am aware that there are many many many people on this site and others that have skill that far surpasses mine, and that is why I need feedback. Feel free to tell me where I have room for improvement. And if you like it just please let me know. THANK YOU! Lots of love!

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Severus Snape frowned inwardly as he watched the girl sleep out of the corner of his eye. He tried not to take his hands from the wheel of the car to rub his burning mark. He forced his thoughts away from his impatient master on onto the girl. Lillia had always been the brightest student in his House. But could she really be the daughter of Lord Voldemort? She always has the highest marks of any in her year. She could brew the most difficult potion with perfection and ease. She could most often be found in the library with piles of ancient books around her. Many questioned her placement in Slytherin over Ravenclaw. But as bright as Lillia was, she was missing one main characteristic that she did not share with the Dark Lord: ambition. She never strove to excel over her classmates. She seemed more avid about meeting her own goals and meeting her own potential. She had very little concern in making the connections and relationships that a young Lord Voldemort did. Lillia usually settled for polite interest when cornered in a social situation. She seemed comfortably detached from her peers. Snape had always pinned her as simply studious, but after seeing her behavior in the orphanage he began to question his assumptions. At school Lillia was confident if quiet. She didn't seemed shamed by anything that she did or felt. When she had been exposed as a Mudblood she had appeared unabashed. But he was beginning to think that she was hiding something.

Severus had told her who her real father was the second they had reached the car. He had been instructed to do so, and he was relieved. He had not wanted her to have to face Lord Voldemort without some form of warning. But if he had been told not to say anything he wouldn't have said anything. Somehow she had taken it all in stride. She had simply smiled thinly at him with sorrowful eyes and said. "Oh. So that is why I wasn't sorted into Ravenclaw."

He only hoped that she could maintain such composure in the face of the most feared wizard in the world. The Dark Lord would not accept weakness from his heir. Much more was expected than that. But surely she could handle it. How quick she had been at the orphanage' how smoothly she took the news of her father. The transition of her personality was almost startling. How unsure of herself she had been around the awful Muggle woman. How collected she seemed now. Her indifference at school. Severus Snape was begging to think that Lillia would make quite a good Death Eater herself.

(Sorry it was soo short, but the next should be comming soon. :) Don't forget to review!)


	4. Great Expectaions

Disclaimer: I never put one of these on the first two chapters, and I probably won't on any others because they are pointless. All of this, except Lillia, belongs to JKR. Anyone who could possibly be confused on this matter is a git!

NOTE ON REVIEWS: Thank you for the reviews. Please send more….. reviews make me smile……. really, it's quite sad. Anyways, please keep the review coming and I'll keep chapters coming. Yes my dear short friend, you know who you are, you must review too. Well, here it is kids…. CHAPPIE FOUR!

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"Lillia?! YOU are his daughter?" Draco Malfoy's mouth hung open in an expression wavering between awe and horror. "But you are a Mud…" His words were cut off as Lucius yanked his son by his hair ruthlessly. "Draco, keep your mouth shut. You know whose daughter you are insulting!" With a shove Draco was shoved to the ground, where he resigned to stay, his sharp eyes crying out to speak. 

Voldemort stepped towards the lanky girl. "Well, come closer, girl. Let me have a look at you." he said silkily. Lillia calmly and with a sense of forced gracefulness brought her self to the center of the dimly lit room. Her intense green eyes leapt to his in surprising confidence. He smiled. "It's eerie, you have the very face that I once had. With a few of her touches." He reached a pale thin hand out to push a curly lock of black hair out of her face. "Hair like your mother." It fell just to the girl's lean waist in a cascade of dark spirals. She held all of the beauty that had graced her mother before being sent to Azkaban. "Very well, you are definitely my child. Lillia is your name?" He asked obviously cautious of Draco's outburst.

"Yes, my Lord. I chose it myself, ironic don't you think?" her measured voice betrayed no emotion.

"Ironic indeed. Well, it's a lovely name."

"I'm glad that you approve, my Lord." she smiled thinly. He frowned, the girl was quick. He had not expected such control from a child, even his own, after such a shock. "You should call me father now. Are you happy to have me as a father, Lillia?"

Her mouth scrunched into a frown. "I'm not so sure just yet. I am, of course, happy to have a father. But having the great Dark Lord as a father comes with great expectations does it not? I just hope that I can meet these expectations." Damn. He had underestimated her intelligence. She did not shame his own. Worst of all, she could manipulate the gift of speech almost as well as he.

"I'm sure that you will make me nothing but proud. Now I must show you something I think will help you better understand the expectations I have for you." Voldemort drew his wand from his robes and said a quick spell. In the space between his feet and Lillia's the body of Bellatrix Lestrange appeared. As her eyes fell on the pale woman she knew immediately that she was looking at her mother. Her father had been right, she had her mother's hair. Only, Bellatrix's hair was wrapped around her face in twisted mats covering her lifeless eyes.

"You killed her." It was no question. It wasn't even an accusation. It was an emotionless statement. "Because of me?"

"Yes. very good. She hid you from me, Lillia. She hid you in shame. Do you realize what that means? Because she was ashamed of you, she sent you to that wretched orphanage." he pause to allow it to sink in before continuing "She lied to me. If she hadn't you never would have had to spend all those years with the Muggles. You would have been loved and taken care of, not displayed as a freak." his red eyes lit in anger briefly and his tone turned bitter. "She had to pay for doing this to you. You see the damage that can be done by lying? As my daughter the only thing that I ask is that you do not lie to me. If you can do that much you will make me the proudest father possible."

"That isn't too much to ask." she said softly. Her eyes fell back onto her mother. "This is Bellatrix Lestrange, right?"

"It is."

"I thought I recognized her face from the Azkaban posters. Did you love her?"

"Power comes at a price for many." His words hung heavy in the air for a few long minutes. The energy in the room was simply electric. The tension being exchanged between father and daughter caused the other men in the room to fade into the grimy wallpaper. Finally Voldemort answered her. "Lillia, one of the things I hope to teach you is the value of opportunity. You can consider yourself a child of opportunity in a manner of speaking. Bellatrix was a very faithful pureblood servant of mine. She went to Azkaban proudly for me. She would have willing weathered any endeavor I set on her. At the height of my power she was very willing to become my wife, but I had long decided that marriage held no interest for me. But the opportunity was nevertheless there, so I seized it. You are the result of that. I am glad to see that my trouble was worthwhile." He turned smartly to his servant. "Severus, my daughter must be tired. I believe that we will be staying the night. Please find her a room for me."

Note: Okay, sorry. I know that this chapter, like all of my chapters, was painfully short. I really liked writing this one and I hope you liked it too. Please review.


	5. Choosing Sides

Lillia stared into the darkness of the small, neglected guest bedroom. She was still in her ratty nightgown, but at least she had the thick blankets to cover her cold skin. "How did I get here?" She asked herself miserably. Just hours ago she had been 'Lillia the Mudblood' 'outcast of the Slytherins' 'the untouchable' and now… it was just too much to take in.

See fought sleep like she did every night. Her mind went back to a more familiar time.

[Flashback

Lilia played absent-mindedly with the hem of her skirt. The dark uniform had been sent to her with two sets of robes and her Hogwarts letter. They were a little worn and the sleeves on the shirts were too short, but that matched everyone else's. At least she wouldn't stand out.

To her right, a smirking blonde boy with sleek new robes answered his thick friend. "'Course it'll be Slytherin for me as well, Goyle. Father says if I get anything less I might as well not come home." They burst into laughter causing the other first years to look warily at them.

"What's Slytherin?" Lillia asked slowly, hopping not to sound too ignorant.

The boy narrowed his eyes. "'What's Slytherin?'" he mocked. "You must be a mudblood. Your kind doesn't need to be worried about what Slytherin is. It has nothing to so with your sort." His voice carried through the Great Hall. The steely expressions of the witch who had greeted them didn't seem to phase the boy.

Lillia frowned. "Mudblood?"

There was a small gasp from a bushy-haired girl near the front of the group. "It's a horrific term for those of non-magical blood."

"You would know, right Granger?" the boy spat. A small group of people laughed. The Granger girl blushed.

What seemed like an eternity later, a stern-looking witch called "Montgomery, Lillia." Wincing at the name and with a lump in her stomach, Lillia walked to the stool in front of the four long tables.

With a squeal she realized that the hat was talking in her head. "Well, aren't you a strange little girl? I could almost place you anywhere. Ravenclaw might be best… but then Gryffindor would be good too. Ah…I see…Slyhterin!!!

The lump that had been ominously residing in her stomach leapt to her throat. Surely she had been mistaken. The Sorting Hat's declaration had not been followed by the usual applause. The Great Hall was filled with a deadly silence until a light slapping sound stated behind Lillia. She turned to see the headmaster clapping his hands and nodding politely for her to take her seat. A few of the other teachers followed suit.

Turning back to the Slytherin table, Lillia tried to ignore the mutinous expressions. She lightly sat down by the blonde boy from before-the one that had called her the name. He met her tentative smile with a vicious scowl. He then turned to an older boy and declared, "It's an outrage! Surely this had never happened before! Wait 'till my father hears about this!"

[End of Flashback

Lillia gritted her teeth. Her following years at Hogwarts had not been any better. Even though she surpassed her classmates academically, she never received the social acceptance from her house that she craved. And now Draco Malfoy was probably telling her father just how poor of a Slytherin she was and at any moment he would come into the room and kill her the way he had so many others.

(Do the line thingy here!!!!!)

Severus Snape eased the door of his guest bedroom open and entered the dirty room. It was strange for him to see Lillia's sleeping body in the bed. He could barely remember a time when he had entertained company, let alone had a use for the guest bedroom. Self-consciously he gazed around the room. The bookshelf that held his extensive volumes on the Dark Arts hadn't been dusted in ages. He could see, even in the dim light, where Lillia had run her fingers across the thick layer of dust on their spines. The cabinet of extra potion ingredients had obviously been inspected too, by the looks of the handprints on the grimy glass windows. In fact, it seemed that Lillia's fingers had explored most of the room. All of the clutter that had accumulated over the years had smudges from her prying hands.

Shaking his head, he turned back to Lillia's sleeping face. Her eyes were red and slightly swollen. She had been crying. He didn't have to guess why. She was chewing on her lip. He sighed and reached out a hand and placed it on her shoulder. "Lillia"-He had to force the name. It was too much like a name he had not said in such a long time. "Lillia, you have to wake up."

"Wha… what's going on?" She rubbed her eyes to clear her vision.

"You have to get out of bed. And put this on." He tossed her some muggle clothes complete with sneakers. "I'm taking you to the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix."

"Did…did you say the Order of the Phoenix, Professor?"

"Yes, I did. Do you know what that is?"

"Of course. The organization that Dumbledore himself started to fight the Dark Lord in the first war."

"Good. Well, then I shouldn't have to explain anything. Get dressed." And he turned to leave.

"But Professor, why are you taking me there. What does that have to do with me?

Severus spun around to face her, his expression pained. "Look," he ripped the sleeve of his robes up his arm to expose the Dark Mark etched into his skin. "I took this a long time ago eagerly. I was barely older than you are now. And I was foolish. Joining the Dark Lord did not get me what I desired. And after I lost everything I ever wanted to this foolish slavery, I became a traitor. I have been feeding information to Dumbledore for years. I alone know how flawed each side has become. You do not want to be forced into either, but it is something I cannot prevent." His voice had become something scarcely above a whisper. "If you have to choose sides, Lillia, don't let it be this one."

Before she could open her stunned mouth, Severus swept out of the room. She hurried out of bed and changed into the new clothes. As she headed out the door she tossed her old nightgown into the wastebasket-glad to be rid of it.

"Now listen to me, I have already contacted Dumbledore about this. He approves and will send the Order notice that I am bringing you to them. He will explain the situation to them, only what they need to know, of course, so we can leave now. You will be safe there."

"Where is my father?"

"He left with Lucius. I convinced him that my plan was good."

"What plan?"

"Lillia, this is the difficult part to explain. The Dark Lord believes that you are going to serve him the same way I have. He thinks that you are going to buddy up to Potter and his little friends to betray them. He thinks that you are going to join their side to serve his."

Comprehension dawned on her sleepy face. She looked up at him, her eyes pleading for an answer to the madness she had woken up to. "You have been my teacher for almost five years now. I have come to you for help in those years and you have never failed me. So tell me, whose side are you really on?"

"I am on my own side, Lillia."


	6. A Riddle in the House of Black

-1A very plump and tired looking woman answered the door of Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place. The light in the hall beyond the door seemed to be almost as dark as that outside. "Hello, Severus." the woman said warmly. "Dumbledore only just said. Why don't you come in." her voice was drowned out by another.

"Filthy Half-Breeds! Spawns of scum! Mudbloods and mutants! How _dare_ you defile the house of my fathers?" Lillia frowned. That did not sound like the type woman she was expecting to oppose You-Know-Who. She turned to Severus to question if they were at the right place or not. But he was looking past her at the witch.

"No, Molly. I don't have time to linger here. I have important business elsewhere, but here she is." he nudged Lillia farther into the threshold of the dim house. With a quick Dissapparating snap he was gone. Lillia's mouth hung open slightly for a moment. He had abandoned her here. He had given her such priceless information and then dumped her on some unknown doorstep. It didn't quite connect.

"Well, do come in, dear." Molly smiled weakly as though hospitality was the answer to all of the awkwardness that Lillia was feeling.

"Err. Okay." When Lillia closed the heavy door behind her she realized that there was a pathetic attempt at lighting in the hall. A few dusty torches had been mounted haphazardly to the walls between the heads of ancient house elves. Her stomach turned. What type of person would mount their servants heads on their walls? Surely only someone like her father would do such a thing. Everything just continued to get confusing. The woman named Molly looked over her should as though expecting something.

She was saved from the embarrassment of having to speak when a handsome dark headed wizard came rushing down the hall. Breathlessly, he muttered "Crazy old woman." the wry humor in his face died away as his eyes fell on Lillia. "So it's true, then. You are their daughter."

"Sirius!" the plump woman frowned, obviously appalled at such rudeness.

"No, it's quite alright. I am 'their' daughter, if by 'their' you mean Bellatrix Lestrange and Tom Riddle." Lillia spat the words out with utter contempt. She had not missed the look of utter disgust in the man's eyes. Suddenly his name registered in her mind. "And you are Sirius Black."

"That I am, girl." he bowed his head to her in a show of mock chivalry. His eyes still betrayed his true emotion. He did not want her here. "Welcome to my lovely home. Well, follow me. I guess we aren't going to get to the bottom of this just standing in the doorway, now are we?"

She followed them deeper into the dreadful house. Almost every step farther into the home revealed another unpleasant piece of décor. They came to an open space in the hall. Behind her stood a winding fleet of stairs. In front of her hung a heavy curtain on the wall. It reminded her of the towels that used to hang in the orphanage to cover holes made by the rowdy boys until Mrs. Hawthorne had decided that they would run out of towels if she kept wasting them. "What is that?" she asked, her voice soft and quiet.

"Oh , that? That's just my dear old mum."

"Just a portrait I would hope."

"Of course." he smiled, but his face still held no sign of welcome.

Lillia was led into the kitchen. It was no less depressing that the rest of the house. Her eyes scanned the large dinning table. "Professor Lupin!" she smiled. He had been her favorite teacher in her third year. Surely he could testify that she was not a Death Eater.

"Lillia?" he rose from his seat. "You aren't…"

"Oh yes she is, can't you just she the resemblance to Bella, Mooney?" Sirius interjected, glaring at Lillia.

"Yes, I believe I can." he nodded to Sirius. "It's been a while hasn't it, Lillia?"

"Yes, it has been. How have you been? I heard that you haven't really been able to get a decent job after we all found out about the whole werewolf thing." The already quiet room fell dead silent. Lupin smiled a sad little smile.

"No, you are right. The Ministry does not favor half-breeds, and that makes it really hard on us to find decent employment. But I don't think that this is the time to talk about that sort of thing." He nodded to the kitchen table. "Why don't you have a seat?"

She realized with much dismay that she was expected to sit alone on one side of the table while the five adults took o the other. They expectantly watched her take a seat. She could only return their gazes. What was she to say to them?

Finally the woman cleared her throat. "I'm Molly Weasley. This is my husband, Arthur. And these are Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Alastor Moody." she motioned to each of them in turn.

"Um, Hello. You are the real Professor Moody and not Barty Crouch Jr., I presume?" she realized immediately that she had made a mistake in mentioning that.

"What do you know about that, girl?" Moody demanded, almost rising from his seat.

"Nothing that all of Hogwarts doesn't know about." she said calmly.

Lupin turned to Moody, who was on the brink of a definite outburst, and said, "Mad-Eye, she was a student at Hogwarts when your imposter took office. She isn't a spy. You too, Sirius." he turned to the dark headed man "You too. I know this girl. She was in my class. She isn't a Death Eater unless she is quite and excellent one."

"Well, that is what we should be worried about then isn't it? We should be worried that she a _very_ good Death Eater. I mean, she is his daughter after all! I think that we should call the kids downstairs and see what they think." Sirius snapped.

"And why on earth should we do that?" the woman named Molly demanded.

"Because, Molly, they have been in school with her for almost five years now! They will know where she places her faith."

"Well, I'm afraid that that won't do you a bit of good." this time it was Lillia's cool voice.

"Because, I am not in Gryffindor. I am in Slytherin. I'm sure that you have Harry Potter and all of his do-good friends up there in bed asleep. Asking them about me isn't going to do anything for you because they don't know me. None of them would take the time to befriend a Slytherin. Why should they? We are ,after all, a bunch of mangy gits. But, then again that is just what I have heard." a small smile crept into the corner of her mouth.

None of the adults seemed to know what to say to that. After a few moments, Lupin spoke up. "Lillia, dear, we have no idea what is going on really. We need to know everything that you know so that we can help you."

She laughed slightly. "No, you need to know everything that I know so that you can determine if I am a Death Eater or not! It's not to protect me, it's to protect yourselves. I'm not stupid. You should remember that much at least, Professor."

He nodded. "Yes I do, but it only makes getting information out of you that much harder."

Lillia tilted her head a little to the left. "Well now, that is true. Because first of all this could very well be one of my loving father's tests. He's brilliant enough. You all could be Death Eaters with polyjuice potion. That could be why dear Professor Snape ran off so quickly. It could be to see how I would act on my own in such a situation. How am I to know for sure? And then of course, you could be the real Order of the Phoenix. If that is true then you might listen to my story, decide you don't like it, and simply decide to do away with me. You see, it is a lot more likely that you will all be against me at the end of this than it is that you will be with me. So, why should I take my chances telling you anything?"

The adults of the Order exchanged looks of shock. They were perhaps not rendered speechless, but found it best if they left the talking to Lupin. He seemed to be doing better than they would. Only Sirius seemed to dying to speak. He was still glaring at her over the table. Lupin said. "Well, if you won't tell us anything then we will just have to send you to bed until we can get Dumbledore to come here."

"Oh, that's fine. I will tell you one thing, though. I was an orphan until this very night. I had no idea who my parents were or where they were. Tonight I was picked up from my orphanage and taken to Voldemort. So, it's unlikely that I have been warped and programmed to being a Death Eater. Muggle orphanages generally don't do that sort of thing."

Sirius frowned. "And how do we know that you are telling the truth? You could just be saying anything to make us trust you. Well, I don't trust you at all I think that you are a dirty little Death Eater like the rest of them."

She raised an eyebrow. "Do you mean purebloods? Surely you can't mean that, because it's said that you yourself are a pureblood. And even if that is what you mean, I didn't know I was pureblood until a few hours ago. Or, do you mean Slytherins?"

"I mean Slytherins!"

"Hah! Now that is simply childish and stereotypical! But I can see where you would think that, but you can ask any Slytherin, they like me just about as much as you do! As a matter of fact about the only people who like me at school are the teachers, and I'll tell you what fun that sure is! And you know what? I really don't think that I appreciate being called a Death Eater when you yourself were once sent to Azkaban for the very same crime!" She slammed the kitchen door as she stormed out.

Lillia crashed face first into someone as she slammed the door. "Sorry, I…. oh!" she stopped short. "You are Harry Potter."

The tall boy frowned. "Yeah, I know who I am but who are you?"

She chewed on her lip. "Um, I'm Lillia. I'm Voldemort's daughter."

"Oh!" She had caught him off guard. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm a spy."

"Oh." He stepped around her and went into the kitchen. Lillia could hear raised voices coming from the other side of the door. She wasn't really sure what she should do then. She wanted to rush back into the kitchen and scream at them for being so ignorant. She wanted to blame them for the way she felt. Most of all she wanted to run as far away from anything to do with Voldemort or the Order as she could. She decided to compromise leaving the house. She crossed the hall, opened the front door and threw herself onto the curb hugging her knees to her chest.

She allowed the dark night to engulf her anger. As she breathed heavily she noticed that her anger was fading, swallowed up by the cover of darkness. After about twenty minutes she felt almost eerily calm. The door behind her opened and someone sat beside her in the dark. She knew who it was. Nobody else would simply sit beside her and wait until she spoke. Nobody else would have been sent out to calm her, simply because nobody else would have wanted to.

"Professor," she said "I shouldn't be here. Voldemort wants to use me as a spy. Dumbledore wants to use me as a spy. I'm not cut out for this sort of thing. This is like a Potter escapade, not my thing. I'm not a brave Gryffindor or a cunning Ravenclaw. I'm just Lillia, a Mudblood Slytherin."

"Ah." he answered "But that's just it! You aren't a Mudblood. And you really shouldn't use that word, especially to describe yourself. If you keep it up, you are going to start believing it."

"I do believe it. Having them for parents doesn't change anything. Actually, it makes it worse. I have the type of parents that would find something wrong with a person simply because they have Muggle blood. They are the type of people who treat people the way I have been treated. Hell, my own father practically invented it! My blood isn't just dirty, it's the dirtiest!"

"Well, yes, but your parents do not define the person that you are going to be. Have you ever met anyone who's parents expect them to be a certain way or do certain things and they turn around and are the best people you have ever met? Take Sirius for example. His parents were two of the most faithful to Voldemort, and he is in the Order. Lillia, don't you see that? You are brilliant, if I remember correctly, surely you can understand that much."

"Well, yeah, but he started acting just like all the Slytherins when he took such a strong disliking to me when just because of my father."

Lupin closed his eyes for a moment. He sighed as though he were about to do something laborious. "Lillia, you don't quite understand where he is coming from when he says those things. He lost a whole lot because of Voldemort. His best friend, twelve years of his life, and ,on more than one occasion, almost his godson's life. It is hard for him to trust anyone, especially someone he has reason to believe a Death Eater. You can understand that."

Lillia blinked honest eyes up at him. "Well, no, I can't understand how that must feel. But I can understand what it is like not to have a best friend. And I an understand what it is like not to have family. So, I do know that if I had those things I would never want to lose them. Something like that would be devastating. But I don't see him taking the time to try to understand me."

"Well, why don't you try to help me understand?"

She turned away from him to stare into the street. Light was faintly beginning to cut through the darkness. "Ok. I don't see what it can hurt." she sighed "My name is Jane Montgomery. Or at least that was the name given to me by the orphanage. At four I decided to change my name to Lillia. I had read the name somewhere. I hated the name Jane more than anything. can't you just hear how plain it is? I wouldn't answer to Jane anymore, so overtime I actually became Lillia. But the name still did not change anything. I was still the oddball, too skinny, too smart, too inquisitive, too quiet, too dreamy. Everyone walked all over me. I became a little like the real life Cinderella…"

"Sorry, the real life what?" he interrupted.

"Oh, just a Muggle metaphor. It means I pretty much became the household servant. Or in our kind's terms, a house elf."

"Oh. Well, please go on."

"Okay. So, I became this servant to them. Then when I was about to turn eleven I got the Hogwarts letter. Suddenly I felt special. It wasn't long before the other kids started asking where I was going to go. They were told that I would be going to a school for extra bright kids. It was easy enough for them to believe, I guess, but it made things much worse on me. It didn't take them long to figure out where I really was going either. But finally I get to go off to school, right? I finally get to be with people like me. But I get there and I realize that I know absolutely nothing about the magic world.

As I am waiting to be sorted into a House, and trust me I had no idea how much grief that was going to cause me, when I hear this kid, Draco Malfoy, talking about Slytherin. I am a curious and ignorant child, never a good combination no matter how bright the child, so I ask him what Slytherin is. Obviously if I don't know what Slytherin is then I must be Muggle born, and he isn't shy about pointing that out.

When I go up to get sorted the Sorting Hat is nice enough to take it's time in telling me where I need to go, but eventually it sends me off to Slytherin. I don't think that anyone was very pleased with that announcement. No Slytherin wants a Mudblood. So, on goes my life. I'm alone at school, when the Slytherins are nice enough to leave me alone, and tortured in the orphanage.

Then, earlier tonight Professor Snape comes to the orphanage pretending to be my father. I realize almost immediately that he isn't really my father, but I don't know what he is up to. I follow him to his car where he tells me that Voldemort is my real father. I am shocked, but I still have no idea how to act. We get to his house and Voldemort welcomes me with open arms, he is very eager to have a progeny. He shows me the dead body of my mother, he killed her because she hid me from him, to prove a point. In case you haven't guessed the point is that I must be forever loyal to the Dark Lord.

I am sent to bed so that the grownups can talk, I presume. After a bit of sleep Snape come into the room and tells me that he is working for the Order and that I must do the same. He never really asked me what I would like, he just tells me that I am going to have to play spy for both sides. He says I have to work for the Order while making the Dark Lord believe that I am working for him. So, then he brings me here and you know the story from there." Lillia's vacant voice fell silent. She felt empty. She had just poured every bit of herself out. Sure, she still had her secrets, but to be so open with another person left her feeling hollow.

Lupin rested a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry that you have had to go through this. Thank you for telling me. You will be safe here. Are you ready to go inside or do you need a moment?" Sunlight was already pouring down on them. Lillia had not realized that she had been talking so slowly. She must have stopped in certain places.

She shook her head. "No, let's go on in. I guess I owe Potter an explanation."


	7. Apologies

-1Lillia's face burned in embarrassment. All eyes were on her. It seemed that her father was not the only one with great expectations for her. She knew with a simple sweeping glance around the room that each adult in the room and the Boy Who Lived felt that they deserved an explanation, but how was she to answer questions that she did not understand. They had no idea what they were asking of her. They were asking her to betray a father she didn't even know, a father that had never been in her life. A father that had never been given the chance to be a dad. She had no dirty little secrets to tell. She turned helplessly to her only ally in the room: Remus Lupin. Surely, she had already told him enough to justify herself. She was only the victim here. She had thought that after she had confided so much in him she would be able to convince the rest of the Order that she was willing to be loyal to them. She hadn't thought that it would be that difficult, but now standing once again in the pitiful light of the Black house all of her resolve melted away.

Lupin smiled at the group. "There is a lot here that needs to be discussed. I think that it would be best if we all went into the living room and had a seat first. There is no since in talking in the hall, but I suggest that we hurry. Hermione and Ginny will be up soon, you know how quickly they wake up when they know that there is work to be done." There was a lot of meaning behind his words, Lillia realized. It would help her a lot if she watched how he spoke to the Order. He wasn't just telling them that he wanted to have a nice comfortable seat before they talked. He was telling them that if they wanted any information they would have to behave themselves, he was in control. His kind smile was locked on Sirius; it was intended to keep him in particular in check. He obviously wielded a lot of authority in the Order, whether he was keen on using it Lillia had yet to find out, because Sirius Black did not seem to be the sort to simmer down when properly scolded.

The living room was considerably more comfortable than the rest of the house that Lillia had seen, but it seemed to have a slightly gutted out feeling. Where most people would have books or keepsakes on their bookshelves, Sirius had dusty vacant shelves. There were no random piles of accumulated clutter on the adorned side tables. Even though the room almost appeared to be unused, it was a large improvement from the rest of the house. Lupin, being the first in the room, had his choice of seating: the middle of a threadbare sofa in the focal point of the room. Lillia, glancing around the room, took her seat at his right. She knew that he was the only one on her side in the room. Seeing as how she had suddenly lost her courage he would have to help her.

"Now," Lupin said after everyone had entered the room. "I'll get right to it. All we knew before Lillia arrived here was that Dumbledore expected her to show up, he did not know her identity, and that we were to welcome her while remaining cautious…"

"That's exactly what we are doing, Remus! Constant vigilance, that's the key!" Mad-Eye cut in.

"But that's the thing isn't it, Mad-Eye? Dumbledore said that we were to welcome her while remaining vigilant, but we have not done any such thing. We have all been so ready to point the finger that we haven't made her feel at all comfortable in revealing anything to us. We expect her to tell us everything and leave herself at our mercy when she has nothing to tell."

It was Sirius's turn to interject. "How can that be true, Moony? You aren't thick, tell me you aren't falling for any of her tricks."

"Oh, you are the worst! Padfoot, do you really think of me as thick? I've taught this girl. She isn't accustomed to the idea of having Voldemort as her father. She is telling the truth, she believed herself an orphan until last night." his eyes went to the window. Sunlight was now pouring through the tattered curtains.

Harry, who was seated by Sirius, frowned. "Why would Voldemort put his daughter in an orphanage?"

Lillia swallowed. Her throat was so dry. "He didn't. Apparently, I was born right after he went off to murder you and your parents. She gave me up to spare herself the humiliation."

Sirius gave a cold laugh. "Hah. She loves… loved Voldemort. Having his child would have been a great honor to her. She never would have willingly given you up. I just don't buy it."

As Lillia opened her mouth to speak, Lupin held up a hand. He said, "No, this is something you wouldn't know anything about." He turned to Sirius "Think about Bellatrix for a second. Obviously, she had been hiding the pregnancy from everyone, I don't know how, but she had to have been. Voldemort did not know and I am assuming that her husband didn't have a clue either. If she was hiding it from the world then something must have been up. Bellatrix must have known something that we don't. Why would such a faithful Death Eater hide something so _honorable_? You are right it doesn't fit, but that is still the way it is"

Harry's eyes narrowed slightly behind his glasses. "But, that doesn't make any sense. Where is the proof?"

Lillia jumped up out of her seat and strode across the room so quickly that not even Mad-Eye had the time to react. Her face was inches away from his. "You want proof, Potter? _You _want proof? Well, what proof do you have, huh? I want to see your proof. You say that Voldemort is back and you expect the world to just fall at your feet and believe you because you say it's the truth. And your proof? Oh, just Cedric's dead body. The body of a much more talented student than yourself, which looks suspicious by itself, and you expect the wizarding world to believe that somehow you survived and he didn't? WHO ARE YOU, HARRY POTTER, TO ASK ME FOR PROOF OF ANYTHING?"

The room was silent. No one had anything logical to say to that. The only reason they believed Harry was the fact that they knew him and they had fought Voldemort before, they knew that they could not afford to doubt him. Harry sighed before speaking. "Okay, you have my attention. You are making a good point. I'm listening."

Lillia's fierce glare didn't move from his eyes. The room was motionless, everyone was waiting for her words. "You know what he is like, Harry. His very presence in a room can make your blood run cold. He is worse than the dementors. He touched you last year didn't he?"

"Yeah." he mumbled "He did."

"His touch is like ice. I draws the very heat from your soul. And his eyes…" she broke off into a shudder. "He was looking at me with a sick form of love or at least pride, I can't even imagine what it would feel like for him to look at me with the hate he must have for you."

" I know…" his hand went to her shoulder in a motion of compassion.

She shrugged the hand away. "I don't want you sympathy, Harry. I need you to understand. At eleven you learned that Voldemort killed you parents and that was why you had never had the happy life you had planned for. I woke up one night and was informed that he is my father! That's not the answer to why you never had a happy life, that's the sentence to an eternal life of misery. I guess that in a way they feel just the same, can you see that?" Her voice went cold. "Harry, you don't know who I am, and we have never even spoken, but we have this connection. I'm not saying that I like it, but it's there. If you can't see that I'm telling you the truth then this isn't where I need to be."

A woman's voice cut through the tension. "Harry, dear, she sounds sincere to me." she turned to her husband, who so far had been silent. "What do you think?"

He cleared his throat. "It seems to me that You-Know-Who has caused a lot of people a lot of trouble. I'm just sorry that he has to hurt kids, even his own." he nodded a sad little nod to Lillia. He was obviously a trusting man. Lillia was grateful for that much. In this house it seemed like she would need as much help as she could get.

Harry gave a halfhearted smile. "I'm sorry for being so hard on you, I guess it's hard for me to think that someone else has seen him now and understands how it felt. It's just so strange. And you said you are a spy…"

"Oh, that, sorry." she laughed. "I am. I'm supposed to be a spy for him. Feed him little bits of information so he thinks I'm on his side while I feed the Order every little bit of information I get from him."

"Oh." He glared at the adults "But I thought that we couldn't be in the Order 'cause we are too young."

Molly coughed. "Well, no I don't approve of it either, but…"

"But, it's the only option and it's saving her life." Lupin finished for her.

Sirius crossed his arms resolutely. "Well, I still won't be letting my guard down around you. I'm not ready to trust you."

Lillia smiled serenely. "Yes, that's the only thing I would expect from someone from the Order. And it is the only way that I would have it."


	8. Of Doxies and Destiny

-1The sun was high and the smells of cooking drifted upstairs from the kitchen and yet Lillia was exhausted. She could feel the tension of the night in her neck and shoulders. Her body was aching for rest. Lillia tumbled into the bed. She ran her hand across the yellow flowered comforter, the name Ginny was elaborately embroidered across the middle. Lillia broke into a painful smile. Her face had been so tight from keeping her emotions guarded, but now she was almost on the verge of giggling. Ginny Weasley did not know her, there where plenty of people in her own year who didn't know her, Ginny couldn't be expected to, but once she did she would probably not be thrilled to have Lillia sleeping in her bed. The pretty little redhead would not want the taint of Lord Voldemort to touch her happy life, no one ever did.

Lillia tried to push these dark thoughts out of her head. She knew that it was just going to depress her, or worse, make her want to lash out. That wasn't going to happen though, Lillia never lashed out. Instead she turned back to the cold reality of being in Order Headquarters. It was obvious that she wasn't making many friends here. She had Professor Lupin for one, but she wasn't about to make the same mistakes with him that she had made earlier. It had felt good to release some of her pain. Generally, she could push all that to the back of her head and go on content with her little day, but it was the events happening around her. She had no control. Every little dark and tragic thing seemed to be constricting around her. Her life had generally been hers, maybe it wasn't the happiest of lives, but it _was_ hers. Now she had to worry about hidden agendas and worse. It made her head spin a bit.

On the other hand though, it seemed like she had at least a little support from the man named Arthur, he seemed to expect her to be just your simple little girl. Lillia felt it was naïve of him on a whole new level. He probably should have learned by now, what with being so close to Potter, but adults were often so stupid. When they grew to love something they threw their whole heart into it. Lillia, however, had learned long ago that she couldn't trust anyone, not for long anyway. So, while the Order was busy trying to make sure that she would not betray them she resigned to do the very same thing. But, was she doing a very good job so far? Probably not, with her exposing herself so thoroughly to Professor Lupin. She sighed, she would have to do much better.

Her vision began to fade to a blurry mess of colors as she succumbed to sleep…

She was alone, always alone in a dark place. Someone was screaming in the distance with a voice masked with rage. But she was safe, at least for now, safe in her dark little sanctuary.

And then that dark little world shifted to one of comforting tones, but there was the baby. The crying pained her ears and her soul. The wails were so familiar, so repetitive, like listening to the same sad lullaby night after night, but forgetting the words while the melody remained the same. There was a struggle, a woman's cry, a flash of green light, and everything went black once more. Lillia was consumed by the darkness and the pain, oh the pain…

Gasping for breath, Lillia sat up in the bed. "Ow." She held her head. She always felt dizzy after the nightmares, not necessarily in pain, but definitely woozy. She fought to push the images from her mind, but those strange dreams were so persistent. They clung to her, as they always did, but this time it was different. The first dream still remained a mystery to her, but the second… oh the second. The series of flashing images and sounds made so much sense to her now. Finally, after so many years, the pieces of the story fit together, if not perfectly then adequately, and oh that was enough.

Leaping from the bed, Lillia let Ginny's yellow blanket fall to the filthy floor. She jammed the sneakers from Snape over her feet without stopping to tie them. She did not have the time to mess with such trivial matters.

Her heart pounded in her chest as she sped down the stairs, shockingly she barely made any noise. On the second level, however, she came crashing into a set of mirror image redheads with bulging pockets.

"Sorry," she muttered, shaking her head. "I'm in a hurry."

"Oh." smirked a twin. "That's all right. You're the one they are all talking about. Seems we missed out on all the fun. What are you in such a hurry for. then?"

"It really doesn't concern you." She tried to nudge past them, but their shoulders came together in some sort of human barricade.

"So, you really are _his_ daughter?" the other brother demanded with only slight distaste, his voice was mainly full of curiosity.

"Yeah, and you're Fred Weasley, pleased to meet you, now kindly get out of my way!" she huffed.

Fred grinned. She had guessed his name correctly when his own mother often made the mistake, at least he hoped she has only guessed. "Oh, now. No reason to get all touchy. I was only asking."

"And I answered you, so please just move!" she was becoming exasperated quickly.

"Alright, alright, c'mon George. I can see when we are not wanted." He dramatically took his brother's arm and with hurt but somehow smug expressions and a loud pop, they were gone.

"Uhg!" she panted impatiently. She bounded down the final set of stairs. At the bottom, Lillia looked around hesitantly. She had never been shown around the house and even if she had been, she had no idea where to find him. Chewing on her bottom lip, she headed into the kitchen. Judging by the aroma of simmering vegetables, she was sure to find someone in there.

"Hello, dear, I see you are awake." She called while dropping a handful of sliced cabbage into a large self-stirring pot of soup.

"Yeah, could you tell me…"

"The kids are down the hall in the drawing room, dear. Remus is helping them finish up removing doxies from those old dusty curtains. You can go on and head in there if you like. I don't expect you to help around with the chores and stuff, but you might like being in there with the others. Or, you can have a bit to eat if you like, you must be positively starved. You missed out on breakfast and lunch, you know. I thought about waking you, but I figured that you could use the rest after a night like that." Her demeanor struck Lillia as odd. A woman so devoted to the welfare of her children was treating her, an outsider and _his _daughter nonetheless, like one of her own. It was strange and Lillia was very unaccustomed to it.

"No, but thank you."

"Alright, dear, are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm quite sure, I'm not used to eating all that much anyway." Lillia smiled trying to seem convincing and at ease.

A sad look washed over the woman's soft features. "I'm so sorry, Lillia." her voice was calm and low.

"Why are you being so kind to me?" Lillia asked. Nothing was normal about this.

"Oh," Molly sighed. Lillia was so sick of sighs. They generally meant depressing news. "Because I know what it is like to be hurt by You-Know-Who. I was too young to fight with the Order in the first war, but I was not too young or too stupid to be hurt. I lost an Uncle during the fight, no, actually it was before the true war. No one knew yet what was to become of Tom Riddle. Uncle Fred was just a random causality of the Death Eaters. He wasn't very high in the Ministry, but his position was high enough to earn him a few enemies. They killed him simply because he had married a muggleborn. Many in my mother's family joined their side. My family was broken because of the things that they did. Then only two years ago, Ginny was taken in to that awful chamber… and well I'm sure you know the story." Molly fell silent. Lillia was beginning to think that she was finished when the woman began to speak again. "I'm not stupid, Lillia. I know the things that V.. Voldemort" she shuddered at the utterance of the name. "can do. I also know that the people in his reach are not necessarily bad people. They are just people doing what they think that they must do. You should not have to be forced into his world, I am sorry that we were all so quick to judge you based on your parentage. You have done nothing wrong and we have all been jumping to accuse you. We should be above that as old as we are, but we make mistakes too, and I'm sorry." she rested her hand on Lillia's shoulder. "I am being nice to you because I should. None of this is your fault. You did not chose to have the father that you have."

A sudden surge of affection for the woman hit Lillia unexpectedly. Her emotions had been so unpredictable for so long it was good to have this woman's acceptance even if it was not granted in affection. "Thank you." that was all she could manage.

"You don't have to thank me, dear." Molly smiled. Her mournful expression was exchanged for one of warmth. She pushed a piece of bread into Lillia's right hand. "Here, eat this at the least, I know you are starved."

Lillia waited until she was in the hall before engulfing the bread. From the smell of it she could tell it would have tasted delicious, but inhaling food leaves little room for the sense of taste. Feeling less empty, Lillia headed down the hall. As she passed the large curtained section of wall, she smiled to herself. Yes, Lillia had heard as much of the Black family as any good Slytherin. It was ironic to her how such an influential and notoriously wretched supporter of her father had been reduced to such an existence. Her portrait screams whispers of a fading legacy while her dirty bones rot in grave much too deep for her. "What a fitting end." Lillia whispered almost hoping to wake the wench for an opportunity to tell her what the daughter of the Dark Lord thought of her.

Finally, Lillia came to a set of peeling double doors. Behind the doors, she could hear a lot of screaming and excitement. She held her hand hesitantly above the middle of a door. After a few minutes of listening to the noise she gave it a halfhearted rap. The laughter on the other side did not falter. She tried again, still no answer. After a third and much more forceful knock, she pushed to door open.

The room was in total chaos. She only had seconds to take in the moldy carpet and dark green curtains before she noticed the doxies. The beetle like creatures were zooming around the room as they were being sprayed in clouds of suffocating fumes. She turned to see Hermione Granger staring at her. Lillia tried to smile, but the taste of poison filled the air. Suddenly pain surged through her left eye. Lillia gasped and her mouth filled with a biter taste. She looked into Hermione's horrorstricken face. The last thing she remembered was the smell of the Doxycide.

**DRAW LINE HERE!!!!!**

Lillia could feel the presence of several bodies pressing nervously around her. She fought to get her eyes open. Swimming in the blurs of her vision was the face of Harry Potter. _Harry Potter?_ She threw herself upward into a sitting position. "Wha… appened?" she slurred.

Lupin smiled somewhere in her peripheral vision. "You were bitten by a doxy." he said soothingly and held up the petrified culprit.

"Bloody Brilliant!" the twins breathed from somewhere behind her.

Lillia sighed and looked around at them. She counted them off in her head. _Professor Lupin, Potter, Granger, and four Weasleys. _It would be hard to get him alone. "I don't feel so good." she murmured.

"Here, eat this." Lupin instructed. "You haven't exactly faced dementors or anything, but a little chocolate couldn't hurt." He broke a piece off of the bigger bar and tried to hand it to her.

Lillia shook her head. "I'm allergic to chocolate, Professor."


End file.
